I had the best day at the spa today! Eric's parents gave me a gift card to my favorite spa here in Point Clear, AL for my Birthday and today I finally cashed in on it. I seriously live in the most beautiful town in America. This is the Gand Hotel where I went for my spa day.
Since I had a gift card I thought I would go all out and try something new, so I got a warm stone massage!
If you have never tried it you must go out tomorrow and get one! It was the best massage I have ever had! I splurged a bit and got an 80 min. full body massage. Like the picture below, the therapist takes hot stones and hot oil and rubs you down head to toe! AMAZING!
After the massage I retreated to this beautiful quiet room where I soaked in the Jacuzzi, drank lemon water, ate granola and read a magazine. Then I hung out in the steam room for a while before leaving.
I told Eric I am meant to live a life of luxury. :) I love spa days!
Thought I would share some of the songs I've been jamming too recently! Nothing like some good music to make you feel good! "Music take us where words cannot."
First up, Kelly Clarkson and Vince Gill's Duet- "Don't Rush". I love singing this song in the car, shower, or just around the house. It makes me happy!
Next is my FAVORITE Hunter Hayes song on his new album, "What you gonna do"! Eric and I agree he should have made this a duet! But I absolutely love this song!!!!
Next is Kelly Clarkson's "Catch my Breath"! Can you tell she is kinda my favorite right now! I love all the anthems she sings! She is a tough cookie, ballsy, and hard core! She is the BEST! I want to be like her when I grow up! BAHAHA
Okay lastly, I have to share this song because I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE, did I mention I LOVE this song!!! Grace Potter and the Nocturnals- "Stars"! This is my chillin song!
L.T.B….. also stands for lift, tone, burn, and is the motto my new place of workout, and I've been doing a lot of that this weekend. As a Birthday gift from my mom, I received a gift card to attend Pure Barre! I don't know if many people have heard of it, and it is seriously the best kept secret! "Pure Barre is an intense, non-impact work out that utilizes small isometric movements done at the ballet barre which promises to lift tone and burn fat; the followers of pure barre claim it is the fastest most effective way to transform your body." It is seriously a killer work out but probably unlike any other I have ever done. The isometric movements we do have me shaking and my muscles burning yet I don't sweat uncontrollably like I do at zumba class. It is more like a mixture of ballet, yoga, and pilates. It is awesome and I already feel the burn…in fact I feel it EVERYWHERE! I ache in places I didn't even know I worked out. Here's to reaching my goal weight! and my goal toned body!
Oh and as a side note…I've been doing really well with eating healthy! I made a very expensive but much needed grocery shopping trip this weekend and loaded up and pantry and fridge with healthy foods. I've been drinking water mostly and skim milk occasionally (with my breakfast shakes). I'm sticking to lean meats, veggies, and fruits, and trying to stay away from processed foods and carbs as much as possible. I do eat whole wheat bread and tortillas occasionally to get some grains in, and stick to low fat cheeses, nuts with no salt, and diet sodas when I feel like eating something like that. I also have been trying to keep my portions small. It's crazy because I can already tell my stomach is shrinking and I get full a lot faster now. My issue before was eating out because my family eats out all together at least once if not more than that a week. I have found that if I put half the meal in a to go box as soon as I get my food, then I will eat a smaller portion and I stick to ordering meals that are in my "healthy foods" category like fish, and chicken, steak even, and then steamed veggies. I don't completely ban myself from eating certain foods but I try and stick to one bite (just a taste) to quench my craving. I am using my fitbit religiously right now and if I stick to my plan I should be at my goal in April!! Woot Woot for ahead of schedule!!!
It's true! I turned 25 on Tuesday! I had a wonderful Birthday…well sorta hahaha. It all started when I found out that I would be in clinical all day on my Birthday from 6am-3pm. Ahhhh! When I arrived to the parking lot where the staff all park our cars to catch the shuttle to the hospital, I locked the keys in my car with my lunch box. So I spent the day working my bum off in the PICU and never ate. Plus my mom had to bring me the keys to get back in my car! YIKES! yeah not quite the start to my birthday I would have wished for but it turned out great. I arrived home to find Eric had played sneaky from work and stayed home all day. He cleaned the house and had a nice dinner already to cook. Unfortunately I never got to eat that meal because Eric invited all my family over at 7 for cake and I didn't get home till 6:30. By the time we celebrated and had cake and they left it was almost 9. It was too late to eat dinner and so Eric and I just cuddled up and hung out before I had to head off to bed again for another early morning. I got a few Amazing gifts for my Birthday. First off, Eric's parents bought me a spa package to my favorite spa in the area. I am so excited to go get a massage and pedicure and whatever else I choose to get. Eric got me a Fitbit one and he bough a second for himself. It is a wireless activity and sleep tracker. He thought they would be good for us to wear as we try to be healthier and monitor our activity and health. I'm so excited to setup my account and start using it. We are making a competition to see who can travel the further distance in a day by walking, running, or whatever and who burns the most calories. Nothing like a little competition to get us back in shape quick!
I guess there is a scale on its way that comes with an ap for my iphone. So when we weigh in we can keep track of our progress. From all this you would assume that he and I are overweight hahaha but we're not, we are just really excited about trying to be healthier in all aspects of our lives.
I got to celebrate my birthday with me family the weekend before my birthday at Moe's BBQ. They have the best BBQ anywhere around, and you know the South has good BBQ. It was fun and loved the family time.
I love my husband! Happy Birthday to ME!
The family at Moe's BBQ
Sweet Allie is getting so big!
So is Mr. Thomas!
I feel so blessed to have so many people in my life who I love and love me too hehe! Thanks again to all my FB friends out there too! I feel so loved and blessed to be able call you my friends! Here's to being OLDer…and hopefully WISER! :)
I would have written this post sooner but I've been having computer issues. Apparently I just have way too much saved on my computer between the movies, music, and pictures I don't have any more space to load all the pictures from my camera from Eric and I's trip to NOLA, also known as n'awlins….or New Orleans for those of you who really don't know what I'm talking about! Eric is working on getting me a new hard drive for my Mac, so until then... I can only share the photos I took from my iPhone/Instagram.
Eric and I made the 2.5 hr. drive down to New Orleans Saturday morning the 29th and stayed through the night of the 30th. We stayed at the Hilton on Saint Charles Street, and felt very spoiled in such a fancy hotel. While we were there we spent time at the Riverwalk Marketplace looking through all the shops, ate at Drago's (best charbroiled oysters we have ever eaten!!), walked around the French Quarter, ate beignets at Cafe Du Monde, went to BMC (a Jazz club - we danced and listened to good music), ate breakfast at The Ruby Slipper (recommended by a local and was well worth the hour wait in the freezing cold for a table), again spent the day walking around the French Quarter visiting Jackson Square, St. Louis Cathedral, the French Market ( the oldest market in America), and enjoyed all the shops we could go in. It was a blast just spending time with Eric…3 days straight, uninterrupted, and just having fun together. Eric keeps telling me he isn't happy with me back in school cause I'm not fun anymore. I told him I'm glad I'm back in school because I hate staying home all day having to try and find things to keep myself busy…I told him if I had a baby I would be okay with it though…bahaha hint hint. Enjoy the pics: (hopefully I can add some better pics soon).
Beignets and hot chocolate at Cafe du Monde
BMC Jazz club in the French Quarter
Listening and dancing to good Jazz!
More Jazz….you can seriously walk down the street and there are people on every corner playing or singing jazz music.
At St. Louis Cathedral
Freezing our bums off waiting for breakfast! We had the BEST breakfast! Expensive but worth it!
Inside our hotel!
Shopping in the French Quarter…Eric really wanted to buy a voodoo doll but resisted the urge! Bahaha!
Waiting for Mr. B's…this is where I had a bout of impatience and we left without eating… so I promised Eric I will take him back again sometime and we will eat there. 2 hours is just not worth it to me.
Every year Eric buys me an ornament for our Christmas tree an it's supposed to symbolize something meaningful we've done together during the year. This was mine this Christmas…he was nice enough to let me pick it out.
We had a wonderful trip and our looking forward to my graduation and hopefully many trips to follow!
Every year 90% of people do not reach their New Year's Resolutions. I actually feel like I did pretty good this year just reaching 1 goal! I actually got accepted into nursing school and we moved to the South, but instead of saving we actually spent most of our savings moving to Alabama. I guess it was worth it to keep resolution #1, and thats what it is there for, but I hate not seeing thousands of dollars in our savings account anymore. I also wasn't as healthy as I would like to be this past year because…and yes here begins…. my list of excuses, but being a college student again has ruined me. I am back to my old eating habits of college life, where a granola bar for breakfast, ramen noodles for lunch, and pizza for dinner happens…. And happens more than it should. I haven't been cooking like I did before I went back to school, and Eric has actually lost weight because of it. Me on the other hand, have not…and I don't feel healthy like I want too. I also never feel like I have or make time for working out, and no longer have a gym membership since we moved, so I really have some work to do. So it is time for me to make resolutions for the year 2013.
Drum Roll………..Here they are: (Lesley's) Resolutions for 2013
1.) Hit my goal weight by July 26, 2013 ( Nursing school graduation day). I'm 5'6" and my goal weight is 125. I don't have too far to go, but I want to be there by graduation day, because Eric and I want to celebrate my graduation with a cruise to the Caribbean with friends and family, and I want to have my ideal body before reaching resolution #2.
2.) Make a baby! I can't believe I am sharing this very personal goal for life, but it's true. Eric and I have been waiting for me to finish school before starting our family and I will be graduating in July! I don't think we will ever feel ready enough to take on this task financially so we just need to do it and let the puzzle pieces fall into place.
3.) Start a new career as a nurse. I still have no idea what specialty I would like to work in as a nurse, but my goal is to get hired as a nurse, and start this next new chapter of my life after graduation.
4. ) To buy or begin renting our own home. Eric and I are very blessed right now to be living and renting my mom's home from her, but it won't be long before she is ready to get back into her own space. Eric and I would like to have our own place before this happens :D. No offense mom, we love you…just need our own space.
5.) Help Eric reach his career goals. My poor husband works his bum off to support us, while I go to school and I couldn't be more grateful or proud of him for his work ethic and his dedication and love for me. After I am through with school in July I want to help him reach his own personal career goals. Wherever this may take us, is where we will go!
Bring it on 2013! We are ready to tackle you head on!
Christmas was a blast this year! It was great to be home in Alabama to spend Christmas with the Winberg crew this year. We missed spending the holidays with the Hale family, but we are grateful for technology and the ability we had to Face-time with the family in Wyoming on Christmas Eve. We went to 3 different Christmas parties this year; one at our house on Christmas Eve, and two on Christmas day, 1 at my brother's house, one at my Brother-in-law's mother's house, and I guess another little gathering at my aunt's house. It was wonderful to visit with all the family. I also got to go see Les Mis with all the girls Christmas night, and Eric went and saw Jack Reacher with the boys. Les Mis was amazing!!!! I can't stop singing the songs. Did I mention that we did all this while surviving a deadly tornado Christmas day. Petty scary and made for an interesting night. Here are some of the pictures from our southern Christmas.
My nephew Gabe with his Uncle Eric
Allie with her aunt Nina
The grand-babies
My handsome hubby opening gifts on Christmas Eve!
Host and hostess with the most-est!
Winberg Kids
Winberg kids with the parentals
My mom with her grandkids…believe it or not this was the best picture I could get of the 4! haha
Aunt Lala loving on her baby Allie! She has the Winberg eyes!
My Christmas loot from Santa!!! Love my new Kitchen Aid!! I feel very spoiled and very blessed!! Eric is anxiously awaiting my first batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies using my new mixer!
Christmas dinner at the Wilson home! AMAZING food!
Loving on my baby Gabe! Wish my sister's fam didn't live in Ohio, but very grateful for the opportunity to see them for Christmas!
Here is the tornado caught on tape! We are all safe and experienced no damage, but my mom's boyfriend's house was barely missed…1 block away roofs were ripped off homes, giant oak trees were ripped out of the ground, and his church was destroyed. We pray for those who experienced any loss do to this storm.
Eric and I are excited to be getting away this weekend. We are traveling 3 hours for a little weekend getaway in New Orleans! It will be a first for Eric, so hopefully he will enjoy his first real taste of cajun food, beignets, and anything new he might experience…Bourbon street, cough cough :)
We are very blessed to have wonderful family who love us, and been very blessed this Christmas season! We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas.
I Just completed my first semester of nursing school and I couldn't be happier!!! It was a very long semester! Coming from BYUI where semesters are shorter to begin with, add in starting class 1 month before the rest of the school began Fall semester, and then ending a week after everyone else finished…makes for a lonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng semester. So needless to say, I am pooped! I completed 29 of the total 72 credit hours it takes for me to graduate just this semester, and I have winter and spring semester left and then I'll graduate with my BSN in nursing!!! I can't believe it honestly! These last 5 months have been really like a roller coaster. We started with 32 students in our class, and we've lost 3, soon a 4th…she is having a baby, and gained 1. The program is grueling and you have to make the grades and can't miss any days other wise your dropped from the program. We are constantly taking tests, some of which you have to get a 100 or you don't get to move on to the next course, and believe me, they don't try to make these tests easy. But I guess this is what I signed up for when I applied for an accelerated nursing program that takes 1 year to complete a Bachelor's. Some days I'm stoked to be back in school and other days I'm complaining to Eric, asking him why I ever talked him in to letting me go back to school! hahhaha But I am so glad we made this decision and I know it was the right one! I love working in the hospital and taking care of the patients and feeling like I'm actually helping them heal. I can't wait for next semester because I will begin my Maternal Child rotation, working in a local hospital in labor and delivery, NICU, and PICU. But I couldn't attend school without the support of my wonderful family, especially my mom! She is renting her house out to us fully furnished for hardly anything a month, gave me her car to use since we are now a one car family till I graduate, and always treating us to dinner and trips. Most of all I am grateful for a husband who supports me and works his booty off everyday at a job he loves, but would love more if it paid better! :) He is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me aside from the gospel of Jesus Christ and I love him more and more everyday. He is my best friend, my rock, and the one always making me believe in myself and my abilities. He knows exactly how to cheer me up, handle me when I'm stressed, and love me when I'm unloveable. He is the glue that holds us together when I feel like falling down. I'm so thankful Heavenly Father brought him into my life 6 years ago. It's hard to believe that 2 years ago he dropped to one knee and proposed to me in front of thousands of people at Epcot. I love you ERIC to the moon and back………for forever! :)
On a side note, we went and saw the Hobbit last night! We loved it of course, but I told Eric we need to do a Lord of the Rings marathon because I've only seen the first movie all the way though and it was years ago. You should have seen his face struck with awe and horror! hahaha I know that sounds nerdy, and these are so not my typical movies I watch, but my husband loves them and has read all the books, and well, it's our little secrete, but I actually really like the movies!
Also I have to share this because I would be doing you all an injustice if I didn't, but here are 2 music videos from one of my new favorite duo I've been listening to! They're amazing and can literally sing any genre of music! Enjoy, and spread the word about their awesomeness!
Time to do a little filling in on us Hale's here. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with my family this year. Lots of family came in from out of town; cousins, aunts and uncles. It was a blast just getting together, doing the traditional cousin movie night, and cousin pictures! This year after thanksgiving dinner, all the Winberg cousins got together and went and saw Red Dawn. Thankfully we were able to go to the 7:30 movie so Eric was able to come along too before he had to go in to work to manage black friday madness! I love family time and we can't wait to spend time with family again at Christmas.
Black Friday was…… not my favorite this year. I did get to go…but not at midnight like I usually do. I picked up a few things…and was able to restock on my Bath and Body work soaps like I do every year. Just can't beat the 4 for 15$ deal.
The saturday following Thanksgiving the Winberg family hosted a bridal shower for my cousin Marissa, who is getting married in April. The shower was held at this AMAZING sandwich restaurant called Panini Pete's. We had a fun time celebrating this special time with her.
We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Photos to come!
As for the filler: (Random News)
Eric and I have started watching House a lot!
We decorated the house for Christmas
I got to spend time in the O.R. this week in clinical, one of the nurses looked just like Addison from Grey's and Private Practice so I was really excited about that! Bahahaha!
Sometimes I question why I ever thought it was a good idea to go back to school? WHY????????? Especially on nights where I am up till 1:30 AM doing homework and have to get up at 4:30 AM to go to the hospital for clinical. So far it is great and really love working with the patients. I am learning so much in such a short amount of time. On top of being stressed, with a lack of sleep, I wonder every day when I'm going to break out with shingles, or get a stomach ulcer. But, I know the Lord loves me, and has directed me to this very path, to be a nurse!! Who woulda thought??? Not me! But just FYI, if you know someone looking into an accelerated nursing program tell them to run in the opposite direction. When I heard that this would be the hardest year of my life….I thought "yeah yeah, I can total handle this!!" Wrong! I totally broke down in tears at the hospital on Friday due to stress, lack of sleep, and the emotional roller coaster I was on! It is so not easy as a woman to control emotions!!! But, it's all good and I hope I look back at this year in 7 mo. and think it was all worth it! When Christmas break rolls around I will be halfway done with the program!!! This is seriously the fastest year of my life thus far!!! and THANK GOODNESS! I hope I will have the same experience with this as some people have with giving birth or a traumatic injury! Just please let me forget this whole experience as soon as I graduate!!!! The work isn't the hard part! It's the lack of time to get it all done, and the stress of being perfect and making the good grades to stay in the program, and not having time for yourself, husband, family, and barely time to shower some days! Anywho, sorry…I just needed an outlet to vent for a second! It really is showing me how mentally tough I am, and just how determined I am to succeed! The best part is that I graduate in 7 months with my BSN in Nursing, from one of the top Nursing schools in the country!!!
Well to add a little joy to this post, Eric and I were able to have some of the family over on Sunday for dinner: french toast, with strawberries, bacon, and OJ! Can't beat breakfast for dinner! Here are my cuite pies I got to enjoy an evening with!
Love my Allie Bean!
Thomas is in K-garden…Can't even believe it!
Thomas Photo bombed me! Bahaha
Happy FALL from the deep South! or (LA-Lower Alabama as we call it.)
And how could I forget…Star Valley!
Eric and I are so blessed to have both grown up in such beautiful places!
